wvitbear said:
Stanford had an Asian women from Minnesota who played both sports.
Lindsay Yamasaki.
Naya Ojukwu - Forward
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Last: 7 days ago by annarborbear
Lindsay Yamasaki.
Yamasaki was from Oregon but yes a dual sport queen her sophomore and 5th years at the farm iirc. Think she started at outside hitter sophomore year but her role in basketball team suffered joining the team late (focused on basketball as a freshman and starred). After her 4th year of hoops, came back to volleyball as a 5th year where she started at outside hitter while Olympian Logan Tom was unavailable then played some libero/back row after that.3Cats4CAL said:wvitbear said:
Stanford had an Asian women from Minnesota who played both sports.
Lindsay Yamasaki.
She also was drafted in the WNBA later rounds in between so I'm guessing she did not participate in the W that initial year in order to be eligible for volleyball.
"Naya brings a dynamic skillset that allows her to play and defend multiple positions," Smith said. "She gives us elite athleticism and can score from all three levels of the court. We're going to be able to use her in a variety of ways and she gives us a versatile option on the defensive end."
https://calbears.com/news/2025/5/6/womens-basketball-cal-signs-naya-ojukwu-for-2025-26-season.aspx
https://calbears.com/news/2025/5/6/womens-basketball-cal-signs-naya-ojukwu-for-2025-26-season.aspx
RedlessWardrobe said:Lola's reluctance to score was involuntary. She is a wing player that needs to seriously improve her outside shot. Until she does that she will provide very few points.SFCALBear72 said:
They both exhibited a reluctance to score this past season. Or maybe that was not their role as defined by the coaching staff. Defer to Lulu, Marta, Krimili and Michelle instead.
I'm thinking that will all change this next season. It could be Lola or Gisella. But I'm sticking with the more experienced Gisella.
I really like Lola for her defense but she really need to provide some shooting. Think she just loss confidence as the season went on.
She was out with an injury, so that may have slowed her development.OBear073akaSMFan said:RedlessWardrobe said:Lola's reluctance to score was involuntary. She is a wing player that needs to seriously improve her outside shot. Until she does that she will provide very few points.SFCALBear72 said:
They both exhibited a reluctance to score this past season. Or maybe that was not their role as defined by the coaching staff. Defer to Lulu, Marta, Krimili and Michelle instead.
I'm thinking that will all change this next season. It could be Lola or Gisella. But I'm sticking with the more experienced Gisella.
I really like Lola for her defense but she really need to provide some shooting. Think she just loss confidence as the season went on.
"She can score from all three levels"?
She made one three all season.
She made one three all season.
Well Gonzaga's coach made the same observation when she was recruited there....so, maybe she can if put in the position to do so eh?
"Coach Fortier on Ojukwu: Naya is a great athlete, and has a diverse skill set. She is capable of playing multiple positions for us and will be able to score from all areas of the floor. Naya has an easy personality, and a drive to work that will help her fit in right away. We are really excited to welcome her to the family!"
"Coach Fortier on Ojukwu: Naya is a great athlete, and has a diverse skill set. She is capable of playing multiple positions for us and will be able to score from all areas of the floor. Naya has an easy personality, and a drive to work that will help her fit in right away. We are really excited to welcome her to the family!"
Just my opinion here, even if Naya doesn't have three point shooting ability how much does it matter if she has the ability to score 10 to 12 feet around the key? I'm guessing most of the three pointers will come from Puff, Lulu, and the other wing. Watching the video on Naya, the majority of her points appear to come from areas in and around the key. I like that, something that our team didn't do much of last year.
I think it will be important for our coaches to make an early assessment on what strengths to capitalize upon and which weaknesses to avoid with this player. She scored and rebounded well last year. Don't know about her defense, but she has the athleticism to defend. 9 assists versus 58 TO's in 15 games last year? Let's face it, that is something that will really need some attention.
Also, if we have Walker/Abigor, Sheppard and Okuwu on the floor at the same time, that will be three players that do not shoot the three. So we will need a different offensive system that can much more emphasize attacking the glass and getting into the paint, with passes then back out to Morris and Lulu. Can be done, but we should not just try to plug and play with the same system as last year.
Also, if we have Walker/Abigor, Sheppard and Okuwu on the floor at the same time, that will be three players that do not shoot the three. So we will need a different offensive system that can much more emphasize attacking the glass and getting into the paint, with passes then back out to Morris and Lulu. Can be done, but we should not just try to plug and play with the same system as last year.
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